1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to baby feeding bottles, and more specifically to bottles having liquid flow path including a flexible tube extending from the bottle to the nipple, and wherein a liquid flow control valve is disposed within the liquid flow path, and where an attachment strap is provided for engaging the bottle to a support member.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Baby feeding bottles are generally well known, and bottle devices having a flexible liquid flow tube engaged between a nipple and a liquid holding container are likewise known, as is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,898,290, issued Feb. 6, 1990 to Cueto. A bottle device such as taught by Cueto allows a nipple to be disposed within an infant's mouth where the infant or its caregiver does not have to hold the bottle in an inverted position for liquid to flow. Rather, as taught by Cueto, the bottle can be placed adjacent to the infant and the tube permits the flow of liquid from the bottle to the nipple disposed in the infant's mouth.
A drawback of the Cueto type bottle device is that fluid in the extended feeding tube will drain away from the nipple and back into the bottle when the nipple is sufficiently elevated above the bottle. This condition can lead to the infant sucking and ingesting air in a vain attempt to obtain liquid through the nipple. Conversely, fluid will leak from the nipple continuously where the nipple is sufficiently lowered below the elevation of the bottle. This condition can lead to the draining of the bottle contents into the bedding of the infant. Thus, either condition creates a less than optimum performance of the device. The present invention solves both of these problems through the utilization of a liquid flow control valve in the liquid flow path which prevents both liquid back flow and liquid drainage.
The attachment strap mechanism of the present invention facilities the near vertical holding of the bottle, and does not appear to have a counterpart in the prior art.